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Samsung Announces the Galaxy S4 in New York

Last night, in front of a large number of tech hungry journalists, Samsung unveilled their latest in what feels like an annual update of Galaxy S smartphones. The S4. Soak it in.

Samsung is Apple’s strongest competition in smartphones, and globally is even beginning to surpass the house the Jobs built. According to a report issued in February, Samsung finished first in global smartphone sales in 2012, the first time since the iPhone was introduced. However, in the US, Apple still holds a firm lead with 32.3% market share with Samsung coming in second at 19.5%. The New York launch, therefore, was a direct assault on the American market by the South Korean smart phone manufacturer.

But what are the stats?

According to Engaget, the dimensions of the GS 4 are 136.6 x 69.8 x 7.9mm (5.38 x 2.75 x 0.31 inch) and it weighs 130g (4.59 ounces). The chassis itself is 0.8mm skinnier, 0.7mm thinner and 3g lighter than its predecessor, and it has a 2,600mAh battery.

The Galaxy S 4 offers WiFi 802.11ac support on top of the usual a/b/g/n, and an IR blaster is included for remote control access using Samsung’s WatchON service. NFC, Bluetooth 4.0 + LE are included.

Camera-wise, the GS 4 sports a 13MP BSI camera with f/2.2 aperture and autofocus, while the front-facing camera has a resolution of 2MP. New features include dual-video capture mode, which lets you record video on both cameras simultaneously, and Dual Video Call mode, in which you can make video calls and show the caller what you’re looking at.

As for Samsung’s ‘smart’ features, Engadget reports “The GS 4 will also take advantage of the same “Smart” gesture features we saw on the GS 3, and gives you a few more to enjoy. Smart Pause stops the video you’re watching if your eyes drift away. Smart Scroll will move the screen up or down when you tilt the phone and look at the screen at the same time. Air View lets you use your finger as an S Pen by giving you a preview of an email, calendar appointment, image gallery or video just by hovering your finger over it. There’s also a Group Play feature that connects networks of GS 4 devices (provided they’re in close proximity) to share music in a surround-sound mode or play games against each other.”

The Galaxy S4 will launch in black and white hues, though Samsung plans to add more colours to its lineup later on.